skinsfanevan Posted May 10, 2006 Share Posted May 10, 2006 If you've read this novel by Kurt Vonnegut I could really use some help. What would you say was the rising and falling action of the book since its not written in linear form? Who would you say the antagonist is? It can even be abstract like "time" or "war". And what do you believe to be the most effective scene in the book? The murder of Edgar Derby? The bombing of Dresden? Any help would be greatly appreciated. also feel free to give your general thoughts on the book, its themes etc :notworthy thanks to all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaceman Spiff Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 someone is gonna have a late night of term paper writing ahead of them.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinsfanevan Posted May 11, 2006 Author Share Posted May 11, 2006 someone is gonna have a late night of term paper writing ahead of them.... you know it but its not like a "paper" its like divided into separate parts each one which is an essay so its all together going to be like a 15 page journal collection of essays its such BS but i have to finish it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChocolateCitySkin Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 If you've read this novel by Kurt Vonnegut I could really use some help.What would you say was the rising and falling action of the book since its not written in linear form? Who would you say the antagonist is? It can even be abstract like "time" or "war". And what do you believe to be the most effective scene in the book? The murder of Edgar Derby? The bombing of Dresden? Any help would be greatly appreciated. also feel free to give your general thoughts on the book, its themes etc :notworthy thanks to all I haven't read the book. But, I would suggest for the most effective scene that you simply pick an argument and support it. Usually, teachers aren't looking for a specific answer but rather a successful argument. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roadkill Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 I've read it and barely understood any of it. What a weird book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ignatius J. Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 the antagonist in the book is reality. KV basically wants to put people in situations that seem unreal to get you to see that the things that are real about the human condition are more universal than you would suppose. In his view, the arbitrary nature of life is thrust upon us all, and we have to deal with it. He just exagerates that to make a point. The antagonist is the very arbitrariness of life that throws us all into situations we have no real control over. It's no darth vader, but I think if you start there, you'd have a good paper. I don't really remember much about the individual books of KV, they all blend together. Is this the one with the trafalgarians or is it the one with ice nine? It is the one with the repeated use of "so it goes" though isn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaceman Spiff Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 It's a weird book, I read it when I was 16 or 17. Didn't like it. Thought it was gonna be a cool book based on the title which goes to prove you can't judge a book by its cover (or name). I know this won't help your situation, but take some advice from an English major here on how to write good papers without ever reading books...or most of them anyway. A study a few years ago showed that 65% of all English majors never end up doing the reading, simply because teachers just heap too much on. Anyway... Make sure you attend all the classes. It's a *****, but whatever, if you want to slack on the reading, show up to class. You can't slack on both parts. Take mad notes and pay attention. If you REALLY want to make it look like you care, take a passage out of the assigned reading and ask about it in class. You won't have to read the whole chapter...just read a few pages of it so you get the general idea of whats going on. Mark up your book, write notes in the margins. Make sure you know where passages are in the book that the teacher loves to pick up on. If the teachers worth a **** they'll have a few key passages they'll love to harp on. Know stuff about the author. Where they were born, at what point they were at in their lives when they wrote the book. It might help you get a grasp of what they were trying to convey and what they were commentating on. I agree with ChocolateCitySkin, pick a specific argument and just back it up well. Well structured arguments are what most english teachers are looking for. Sorry I couldn't have been of more help, but good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrockster21 Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 Is Slaughterhouse 5 the one about Ice-9? Or is that Cat's Cradle? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinsfanevan Posted May 11, 2006 Author Share Posted May 11, 2006 Is Slaughterhouse 5 the one about Ice-9? Or is that Cat's Cradle? it has the Tralfamadorians and it also is the one with the repeated "So it Goes" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinsfanevan Posted May 11, 2006 Author Share Posted May 11, 2006 by the way, thanks for all the help even if you dont think you helped much every time someone says something a lightbulb goes off i just hate sitting here and typing i wish i could just talk about it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mooka Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 Is Slaughterhouse 5 the one about Ice-9? Or is that Cat's Cradle? That's Cat's Cradle. Better book IMO.Sorry Skinsfan, I read it a long time ago and don't really remember. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrockster21 Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 That's Cat's Cradle. Better book IMO.Sorry Skinsfan, I read it a long time ago and don't really remember. Yeah, I really enjoyed Cat's Cradle then. I don't even remember Slaughterhouse 5, really...I know I read it though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinsfanevan Posted May 11, 2006 Author Share Posted May 11, 2006 buuuuuuump! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spanishomelette Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 I think the antagonist was Ron Leibman...He killed him, he was really pissed off obviously :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChocolateCitySkin Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 hows da paper? is it as drumk as mre? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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